Some people say that dystopian fiction arouses our fears of dire “if this goes on” futures. Many think dystopian fiction is too dark to read, too depressing. Perhaps. And yet, most of us don’t read to depress ourselves. When you look closely, you can also find hope and words to inspire you.
There must be something in books, something we can’t imagine, to make a woman stay in a burning house; there must be something there. You don’t stay for nothing.
Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451
We Have a Chance
Did you ever feel, as though you had something inside you that was only waiting for you to give it a chance to come out? Some sort of extra power that you aren’t using – you know, like all the water that goes down the falls instead of through the turbines?
Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
We Birth Our Future
Our lives are not our own. We are bound to others, past and present, and by each crime and every kindness, we birth our future.
David Mitchell,Cloud Atlas
We Have a Choice
The most important thing you can ever know, is that whatever your purpose is, that’s not your only choice.
Dan Wells, Partials
We Learn What Matters
It’s taken me all this time, all this loss, to realize what really matters is now.
Suzanne Young, The Treatment
We Learn What’s Possible
“Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark in the hopeless swamps of the not-quite, the not-yet, and the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish in lonely frustration for the life you deserved and have never been able to reach. The world you desire can be won. It exists.. it is real.. it is possible.. it’s yours.”
Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged
For more reasons on why we read dystopian fiction read this post.
Inspirational or Depressing?
Did you feel the hope? That’s what the best dystopian fiction does. It presents a dire situation, an awful could have been or might be, and shines the light of hope on humanity. Do you agree that dystopian fiction is meant to inspire you?
